Thursday, May 31, 2012

Food In Jars (+ Giveaway!!!)

You know those bloggers that, whenever they make a new post and it shows up in your inbox, you just can't wait to read it? Marisa McClellan of Food In Jars is one such person for me. Soon as a new post from her appears in my email, I make a beeline to her site. Whatever new concoction she's dreamed up, it's always intriguing, and it's always good.

Imagine my supreme delight, then, when she asked if I'd be interested in reviewing a copy of her new book. Packed with the best of the blog's offerings and so much more, Food In Jars is an absolute gem. As we enter into high production season for all manner of foods put into jars, Marisa's book is resource you will definitely want to have on hand.

Even as an experienced canner, I found myself learning from her helpful tips, delivered in her characteristic friendly "let's do this!" voice. And the recipes presented here are right up my alley, mixing classics with modern twists. It's a good one, this book, penned by an experienced, personable, true-blue lady.

Marisa and her publisher, Running Press, in addition to gifting me with a copy of Food In Jars, have offered one giveaway copy to a small measure reader. How very lucky for you! To enter, simply leave a comment below, listing something you look forward to putting in jars. I'll start. Tomatoes. Plain and simple. We use a TON of tomatoes chez English and just planted 38 of the plants to grow, harvest, and can. If I never purchase another jar of far-away-grown-and-preserved tomatoes, I'll be a very, very happy woman.

Please leave a means of contacting you in your comment, should you be the winner. This step is crucial. If there's no link to a blog, or website of your own, or email address in your comment, then I'll sadly have to draw another random number. If you'd rather not leave your email address public, simply leave an anonymous comment and then shoot me a private email with your contact information.

I'll run the giveaway for a week, ending at midnight EST June 6th. Even if you don't win, do check out both Marisa's book and her blog. Whether you're already a fan of the water bath or just about to get your lids wet for the first time, you'll be equally smitten. She's got a good thing going on, which will be evident immediately.

*Click on any of the images above to make them larger.

UPDATE: Thank you SO much to everyone that entered! Anastasia was the lucky winner! Yay!!!

Salsa, salsa, salsa. When we opened our last jar of it a couple weeks ago (I wasn't able to make nearly as much as I wanted to last summer), I almost felt like observing a moment of silence. I also want to try making ketchup. Oooh and jam, too. What can I say? Canning makes me a little giddy.

Last year I did tomatoes and peach butter and they both turned out great! But I definitely need to step up my tomato production this year, I think we ran out in Nov!Thanks for the chance to win, Marisa's book looks awesome.

Pickles! I am a hardcore pickle-eater and I've always wanted to make some myself but canning seemed like a huge, dangerous, difficult enterprise. I would LOVE a copy of this book to help me conquer that fear. :)

I cannot wait to read this book...I love her blog too! We didn't make NEARLY enough spaghetti sauce last year (I prefer sauce to tomatoes, it's a staple in my house)....we usually do around 30 quarts and last year did half that amount. I'll fix that come september!!randallkc at gmail dot com

I would love to have this book! I just discovered a mulberry tree tucked away in the corner of the pasture at my new house and I can't wait to try some mulberry...something. Hopefully several things, looks like the tree is loaded this year!

I can't wait to make pickles! I am brand new to canning and we eat tons of dill spears and bread and butter pickles around here. And thank you for mentioning fermented pickles in Canning & Preserving - I had never heard of them before, and my husband is so excited to try them! I'm also hoping to make a lot more jam.

I've swiped so many things from Marisa's blog but what to do with cherry tomatoes and her recipe for pickled red onions are tops! This year I'm looking forward to trying tomatillo ketchup and cherry tomato jam iwth basil.

I love Marisa's blog as well! I made her lemon curd this week. I'm looking forward to canning some blueberry butter this year. It's our first crop of blue berrys and it won't be very big, but I can't wait to try it!

Honestly, I can't wait to can the beet relish in your canning book. I even conversed with our CSA farmer on Wed. the crop season so I could get beets and red cabbage from him in time to can this mouthwatering relish! Other than that, anything that can be canned. First season and I wonder where I have been! Starting a Lemon Mint Vinegar tomorrow!

I'm canning the heck out of everything this year, but I'm most looking forward to canning salsa and pickling everything in sight. :) I've already bought Food in Jars, but I want to gift a copy to my bff who just started canning this year!

I, too, will likely can tomatoes...salsa, stewed, diced, you name it...I am growing 17 plants with 10 different varieties. I just canned rhubarb-strawberry jam last weekend. I would love to see the new ideas and recipes in the Food in Jars book. Thanks!

I have been canning on and off all my life. However, I did the usually things that I can no longer eat. So I am looking to expand my knowledge and experience in canning. For example, pickling garlic scapes and rhubarb.

I have never canned before yet I have all the supplies (jars, lids, rings). I have been toying with the idea of attending a foodswap with baked goods. This book would help me get started with preserving.

One can never have enough tomato products put up...juice, salsa, spaghetti sauce, stewed, etc. This looks like a book that I need for my canning/homesteading collection! You can reach me at dukej283@gmail.com.

I just started making herbal infusions with canning jars...the suck and pop of the top is making me itch to learn canning of veggies and fruits! Perhaps this summer I'll finally give it a whirl! Hugs,Angelaheyzillah@yahoo.com

Last year I had really rotten luck with my cucumber crop so I'm really hoping to redeem myself so I can have a whole shelf full of homemade spicy dill pickles. I'd also like to try to find a great salsa recipe - I've been adding it to everything lately and would love to not have it on my shopping list anymore.

I too am looking forward to tomatoes although this will be my first year canning tomatoes. I'm working through your book on canning at the moment and would love to have another to add to the collection.

Rhubarb. And pears. Not together, mind, but our pear tree is gearing up to overwhelm us in the fall, and I currently have piles and piles of rhubarb -- just finished up a batch of cinnamon-rhubarb jam last night...we'll see how that turned out.

I'm planning on jam and lots and lots of tomatoes. I usually just can tomato juice, but this year I want to make paste, ketchup, and can whole and diced tomatoes. It is my goal to not have to open up a can of tomatoes all year! I'd love to win a copy of the book!

Food In Jars looks like a book I would love!! Thanks for the giveaway! I am looking forward to doing a lot of canning this summer, each year we preserve more food. I'm looking forward to canning applesauce with some blueberries thrown in. It's something we discovered last year, thanks to my husband. We mostly had plain applesauce and only a few jars with the blueberries. Another thing we love to can is peaches! I'm making myself hungry. :)

Way to contact me:www.woolymossroots.blogspot.com

P.S. About giveaways: I was having a hard time getting a hold of giveaway winners on my blog. I went to 'Intense Debate' and downloaded a new commenting system. Now to leave a comment, people have to leave their name and e-mail (e-mail is only visible to me.) It's been so awesome for giveaways!!

Mustard and Ketchup in small quantities. I am intrigued by this concept of small amounts of canning at once instead of the memories of all the grown women in my family locking the doors and canning for hours. While leaving us kids to fend for ourselves as we watched and whined through the screendoor.email is - hippycas at yahoo

I need to can up at least three batches of salsa this year, and probably the same amount of sauce. Making plenty of jams and jellies, and planning on trying rhubarb bbq sauce for the first time. Canning fruit, too, whatever's in abundance. Green beans - lots of those. So much to do!

Tomatoes, tomatoes,and more tomatoes! And salsa! Planted about 30 tomato plants-way more than I ever have! Also want to make applesauce, can beans and beets. There's nothing like opening a jar of food that you grew and you preserved for your family!

Ashley I adore this book! Anything that helps us gain more self-sufficiency and reduces our need for mass produced "food" makes me a happy, happy woman..

I'm looking forward to BC cherries coming out so I can can them. With simple syrup made from organic cane sugar, vanilla, and bourbon. Which will also make me a happy, happy woman. though that could be the bourbon ;)

im with you on the tomatoes. planted about the same amount as you and ready to sauce 'em up this year. thanks a ton for the giveaway, i love food in jars!-heatherhmgrisso@gmail.com, or lettuceturnipthebeet.blogspot.com

I have a Senior Citizen CSA and then also teach them how to can. They love the small batch approach and I can't wait to check out these recipes. This year I planted 1400 tomato plants and yes we will be canning for days.

My husband has been missing his grandmother's pickled peaches and bread and butter pickles for ages (she was a true mid-westerner, Nebraska, with remarkable self-sufficiency) and has always wanted to try a hand at it himself. With a birthday in July this would be a super present for him!

About Me

Making an attempt to craft a good life with my husband and young son in a small mountain community. I find pleasure in the light at dusk, atlases, hard cider, cat antics, dog breath, baby giggles, homemade ice cream and snorty laughter.
Author of the "Homemade Living" book series (Lark Books) which showcases topics related to small-scale homesteading and some of the diverse ways people are reconnecting with their food and food communities and taking up sustainable food practices.
I also host a bi-monthly column every Friday on Design*Sponge:http://www.designspongeonline.com/category/small-measures.
E-mail me directly at: ashleyadamsenglish(at)gmail.com.

The Best LIttle Chicken Coop in Candler

"The Big Problem is nothing more or less than the sum total of countless little everyday choices, most of them made by us and most of the rest of them made in the name of our needs and desires and preferences."-Michael Pollan